Blade holder



Sept. 5, 1950 C, GREEN 2,521,291

BLADE HOLDER Filed April 27. 1949 Cons/N L- GEMM,

INVENTOR.

A TTORA/Ey.

Patented Sept. 5, 1950 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE BLADE HOLDER Corbin L. Green, Hickory, N. C.

Application April 27, 1949, Serial No. 89,940

3 Claims. 1

This invention relates to cutting devices and more especially to a blade holder of the type having a removable blade and wherein otherwise discarded razor blades of the injector type may be utilized to form a cutting tool.

Model builders, among others, have long been in need of a device to which otherwise discarded safety razor blades may be secured to form a utility knife which is used not by cutting material with its edge as a whole, but by running the outer end of its edge along the line of cutting. Various attempts have been made tol provide a device whereby safety razor blades can be removably inserted in suitable holders in order to produce a cutting implement. However, there are many reasons why these attempts have failed to produce a blade holder that has proved entirely satisfactory. Among the difficulties encountered in producing a satisfactory blade holder of the type described is that the blade holder has been relatively large, thus intercepting proper .vision and interfering with the performance of the work, or the blade holder has been heavy and cumbersome, r it has not been provided with suitable means whereby an operator may exert pressure on the portion of the blade holder adjacent the blade itself without causing a groove to be formed in the forenger of the user and which would require that the holder could only be used for a short length of time.

It is, therefore, an object of this invention to provide a novel and improved blade holding device or handle utilizing safety razor blades of a type such as are used in injector type razors and with which the razor blades may be quickly replaced with very little effort.

It is another object of the invention to provide a blade holding device for razor blades and the like which may be made of a single sheet of material, other than a bolt which is used as a clamping means, and which is thus relatively light in weight and very economical to produce. The holder is so designed as to conveniently t the hand and has means thereon engageable by the forenger of a user for exerting relatively heavy pressure on the end of the blade.

It is another object of this invention to pro-- vide a blade holding device as described, having means for clampingly receiving a blade at one end thereof and being provided with a tapering tubular stem and also being provided with elongated slots in the wall of the clamping portions of the holding device and whereby, upon the exv 2 blade may be broken off at its free end and projected further from the free end of the holding device and whereby the slots will provide means for observing the amount of blade remaining in the blade holding device.

Some of the objects of the invention having been stated, other objects will appear as the description proceeds, when taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, in which:

Figure l is a view showing a blank before it is folded and formed into the blade holder;

Figure 2 is a side elevation of the blade holder and showing a blade mounted therein;

Figure 3 is an enlarged vertical sectional view taken substantially along the line 3-3 in Figure 2;

Figure 4 is an enlarged View looking at the right-hand side of Figure 2 along the line 4 4;

Figure 5 is the top plan View of the clamping end of the blade holding device and is taken looking along the line 5 5 in Figure 2;

Figure 6 is an enlarged vertical sectional view taken along the line I-B in Figure 2.

Referring more specifically toI the drawings, the numeral I broadly designates a relatively lthin sheet metal blank from which the blade holding device is formed. This blank In is provided with an elongated tapering portion I I, which, when formed, provides a tapering tubular stem as shown in Figure 2.

The portion II gradually increases in width from right to left in Figure 1 and then curves inwardly at opposite sides thereof as at I2 and its lower side in Figure 1 is provided with a tab I4 which is wider at its junction `point with the blank than it is at its free end. This tab i4 joins with a clamping portion I5 which extends from the portion I I to the .left and the blank ID is also provided with a clamping portion i5 which is identical to the portion I5 with the exception that it is not provided with a tab such as M. The portions I5 and I5 are defined by and are folded along lines 2@ and 2l at the same time that the upper and lower edges of the portion l I are caused to meet in a-rolling operation to form the widest portion of Athe tapered portion I I into an elliptical shape in cross section as shown in Figure 6 and gradually tapering to the circular shape as shown at the upper portion of Figure 4. It so happens that when the blank I0 is folded along the lines 20 and 2l, a curved bottom is form'ed'at the juncture of the clamping portions I5 and I6 as is clearly shown in Figure 3.

Referring again to Figure 1 it may be observed that the clamping portions I5 and I6 are each provided with an elongated slot 25 and it may be observed in Figure 3 that these slots 25 coincide when the blank I is folded along the lines 2U and 2|. The portions I5 and I6 are provided with ears 26 and 21, respectively, and each of these ears 26 and 21 is provided with a, stamped hole or bore 30, these bores 30 coinciding with each other when the blank I0 is folded along the lines 20 and 2I as shown in Figures 3, 5 and 6.

After the blank I0 is folded along the lines 20 and 2| and its tapering portion is formed into the stem II as shown in Figures 2 and 4, the tab portion I4 is bent at right angles to the clamping portion I5 so as to extend across the upper edge of the portion I6 in Figures 3 and 4, and it will also be noted in Figure 3 that this tab extends outwardly a substantial distance beyond the portion I6 in Figure 3 to thereby provide a surface against which ones forei'lnger may rest as indicated in Figure 2 while exerting pressure on the blade to be presently described. Also, to prevent the holder from slipping out of ones hand, a portion of the outer surface of the stem I I is knurled as at 32, so that, on occasions where a relatively small amount of :pressure is required to be exerted on the blade, to be presently described, the operators thumb would bear against the knurled portion 32. In Figure 2, however, the operators thumb is shown as beingclosed adjacent the tab I4 as this is the position that ones hand would naturally assume when a greater amount of pressure than normal would be required to be exerted on the blade, to be presently described.

The bores 30 in the ears '26 and 21 are adapted to be slidably penetrated by a screw 33 having a knurled nut 34 thereon and which, when tightened on the screw 33, will clamp the por.- tions I5 and I6 together. By loosening the screw 34 slightly the `portions I5 and I6, being inherently under tension, will move apart at their upper ends in Figure 3 and will thus provide a slot for reception of a suitable razor blade 35, preferably of a type such as is used in an injector type razor. Before the razor blade 35 is inserted between the clamping portions I5 and I6 of the blank Il), the left-,hand end in Figure 1 or the free end of the blade 35 may be broken off substantially as shown, so that it is pointed at an angle considerably less than 90 degrees, the resulting inclination of the front edge of the blade corresponding to the normal inclination of the line of vision from the eye to the point of cutting when the cutting device is in use. The blade 35 is then inserted between the portions I5 and I6 with its cutting edge facing downwardly as shown in Figures 2 and 3 and it is thus seen that the metal at the juncture of the clamping portions l5 and I6 serves as a guard to thus prevent an operator from cutting his hand unintentionally while using the device, since only a small portion of the cutting edge of the blade 35 projects beyond the front end of the clamping portions I5 and I6.

It may also be observed in Figures 2 and 3 that the coinciding holes or slots 25 in the clamping portions I5 and I6 provide a clear view of the rear edge of the blade 35, so when the blade 35 has been broken away several times at its free end, as will be necessary as the free pointed end of the blade becomes worn, it may easily be observed as to how much of the blade 35 remains between the clamping portions I5 and I6.

Also, in the event that the blade 35 beomes wedged between the clamping portions I5 and I6 of the blank In, a rod, pin or the like may be inserted through the slots 25 in the portions I5 and I6 in back of the blade 35 so as to move the blade 35 outwardly after a portion of its free end may have been broken away.

It is thus seen that I have provided a razor blade holding device which is very light in weight, may be inexpensively produced out of a single sheet of metal, and which is designed so as to conveniently fit the hand of a user and which has lpositive clamping means to prevent the blade from being withdrawn from between the clamping members I5 and I6 unintentionally.

In the drawings and specification there has been set forth a preferred embodiment of the invention, and although specific terms are employed, they are used in a generic and descriptive sense only, and not for purposes of limitation, the scope of the invention being defined in the claims.

I claim:

l. A blade holding device for razor blades and the like said blade holding device being formed of a single piece of sheet metal, and comprising a tubular stem portion, a substantially U-shaped portion into which the stem portion merges at one end thereof and being open at its other end, said U-shaped portion having a pair of upwardly extending clamping portions and a bottom portion, screw means for clamping the clamping portions together adjacent their upper edges whereby a blade may be partially inserted in the open end of the U-shaped portion between the upwardly extending clamping portions with its cutting edge facing downwardly adjacent the bottom Iportion and the screw means driven home for securing the blade to the blade holding device, said bottom portion serving to shield a portion of the cutting edge of the blade, and one of said clamping portions having a projection integral with the upper edge thereof and bent over the upper edge of the other clamping member to form a tab for engagement by the hand of an operator to exert `pressure on the blade.

2. A blade holding cutting device comprising a pair of clamping portions disposed in parallel relation to each other and being joined together at their lower ends, said clamping portions" being provided with coinciding elongated slots, a tubular stern portion integral with the clamping portions and means for clamping the clamping portions together whereby one end of a blade may be inserted between the clamping portions and thus secured to the blade holding device, said clamping portions being of greater height than the height of the blade to shield the portion of the blade disposed therebetween, a tab portion at the upper edge of one of the clamping portions, said tab portion extending at right angles to the clamping portion and extending over and beyond the upper edge of the other of the clamping portions to form a tab for engagement by an operator for exerting pressure on the blade.

`3. A blade holder for a cutting blade, said blade holder being formed of a single elongated piece of sheet metal, the sheet metal being narrow at one end and gradually increasing in width to a point short of the other end to form a tapered portion which is rolled into a tube, a portion at the said other end of the blank having opposed edges substantially parallel to each other and said portion being folded substantially along a line half way between the parallel edges to form clamping members of a greater height than the blade, a tab portion projecting from one of the said parallel edges and the outer edge of the tab REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number D. 31,965 767,695 1,524,686 10 1,827,509 2,081,702

Name Date Arnett Dec. 12, 1899 Kampfe Aug. 16, 1904 Burke-Hennessy Feb. 3, 1925 Ericsson Oct, 13, 1931 Frisoli May 25, 1937 

